Inktober 2017 post #2

Inktober's almost over... And frankly, half of us have quit already. I fell behind after the first 7 days and felt swamped trying to put out 2-5 ink drawings a day. Only my Inktober facebook chat group kept me going.
Then my mother said 'Just do one. The point is that you did something. Just pick up where you left off and keep going, it doesn't matter if you end up with 31 ink drawings, but that you drew them.'
You may be 'behind', just like I did. That's okay. You haven't failed. Pick up your pen and finish the last couple of days, because baby, we're on the home run!

Inktober #5, penned with Le Pens and colored with Blick's warm gray marker set.

 Inktober #15 Characters that my art collaboration partner and I are designing for a Halloween comic 
 Inktober #12 August, prince of Satyrs.

Inktober #16 and #17 I believe. Both done with a G nib/Dip pen. Lots and lots of ink! I wish you all the best in your efforts this October.

Manga Girl Le Pen Technical pens

This is my favorite Inktober illustration so far- right now, I'm three days behind! I'm sure to pull through. :) Next manga Inktober post coming this weekend!

In this first stage I really focus on the SHAPES of the figure. Triangles and rectangles are man-made shapes. If you use more natural shapes like ovals, you'll create a more convincing human body.

Wrinkles follow the curve of those circles and oblong shapes underneath the clothes. Clothes wrap around the arms, the legs, the neck, etc. The image will appear flat without the curving of your wrinkles!

Inked with my Technical Pens. They make it look like I inked her with a dip pen, but the stiff nibs are easier to control than a dip pen. Technical pens were created for the precision needed by engineers and architects, but have become a staple art resource as well. Le Pen is my favorite brand, with a great basic set of stiff nibs from 0.03 to 8.0 along with a brush nib for under 15 dollars, and about 2-3$ each if bought separately.
My preferred set would be made of 0.03, 1.0, 3.0, and 8.0, all of which I own and used on this peice- except for my 0.03, it's ink cartridge has finally given out. It's been two years since I got them, so their lifespan is amazing, especially with how much I use them.

Viola. :) I finished this manga girl off with my warm gray blick marker set- I felt like going the extra mile, like it wasn't finished with just ink. 

Inktober 2017 post#1

It's HERE. Inktober, the monthly 'event' that dominates group chats, art classes, art sites, and sketchbooks around the globe. During Inktober, artists choose to create an ink sketch or finished drawing every day, every other day, or one each week.
Inktober is my helpmeet to push me to make time to create something every day, no matter how sketchy or unfinished.
I've pledged to my own group of supportive artists that for half the days I'll follow the official prompts and the other half? I'll just do my own thing. ;)
 

 Inktober #1. I attended the semi-annual Latter-day Saint general conference last weekend, and during one of the two-hour sessions, I wrote my notes on top of my timeline, chibi girl style. Only after did I realize each of the chibis had props to define that time in my life- except the last one. :`)

Inktober #2. After the inked one, I created a more finished pencil version of this street-wise urchin girl.

Inktober #3. I wanted to draw someone going to war- baseball angst was the closest I could get. This manga girl is ready to kick butt. The second one is the perfected inked piece, but the first is my favorite. It has the flavor written into the messy lines themselves. I also used it afterward as my scrap page for ink testing and scribbles.

Inktober #4. This counts because the upper portion took 30 MINUTES. That chain link fence was killer.
I will enlarge and ink this page layout for a Blick competition this month.